The general rule of thumb for a WR is 2-3 years. 110% true as we went through it with Rice. Just because certain guys produce early, you dont throw that way of thinking out the window.

My point in all of this is, if Blackmon if was selected,he could have done nice things for us. We hashed out why he wasnt picked, and some of you have ragged on him all season long up until last Sunday. But to reiterate, I am happy with the Kalil pick.

There was a reason why people have been ragging on him until last sunday. He was severely underproducing for a top 5 pick, and one big game doesnt really change much of that.

The way I saw, the Vikes needed an immediate impact player with there top pick. Kalil seemed to be a prospect who would be more ready to contribute in a big way from day one.

WR is still a holdover need, but we would be saying the same thing about LT if they took Blackmon.

That whole offense struggled, why would you expect anything different from a rookie? Who has had not one but two different starting QBs already.

Jags offense has life now, and Blackmon is playing better every week, not just last. So i dont get why he has to come in and put up Randy Moss numbers to earn his draft pick status.

The knock I keep hearing about Blackmon specifically this year and not the broader Jags offense is his route running. He's not been giving consistent effort, going at less then full speed and rounding off cuts, he's even been throwing in a couple wrong routes and bad drops. Announcers have consistently been bringing these same points up all season long. Some are rookie mistakes, others like bad passes and no time for plays to develop are out of his control, it doesn't change that his gifted physical abilities haven't been as visible as could be expected on the field._________________

Considering who is throwing to this guy, to have expected much more by him by now would be asking a lot. Most WRs take 2-3 years to hit a 100 yard game, he just hit a 200+ yard game his rookie season. He has the NCAA record for the most back to back 200+ yard games.

Not really true.

Torrey Smith had two 150+ yard games his rookie year
Denarius Moore had three 100+ yard games his rookie year
TY Hilton has had three 100+ yard games this season
Mike Williams and an 100 yard game and two 95+ yard games his rookie season
AJ Green had four 100+ yard games his rookie year
Julio Jones had five 100+ yard games his rookie year

I could go on and these are all recent players...

Only Jones and Green were drafted as highly as Blackmon. Blackmon is behind the eight ball when it comes to QB play, but elite WR's should produce regardless. Blackmon has struggled with getting separation at this level.

He also never had back to back 200 yard games in college... he got close, (190 against Louisiana Lafayette, and 207 against Texas Tech) so now you're just making stuff up

I worded it wrong, my fault. But you listed 6 WRs out of 354667 that have been drafted. If anything your point helps to prove my point even further.

Show me a list of every first round WRs production in year one. Then ill be impressed.

How specifically did you word that wrong? And I was specifically trying to avoid first round receivers (aside from AJ Green and Julio Jones because they were drafted in a similar slot to Blackmon) to show that it's not really such a fantastic thing in today's NFL when a rookie receiver goes for 100+ yards in a game in his rookie season. There are 2nd, 4th, and 5th round picks on that list who have had multiple 100+ yard games as rookies.

I stopped simply because I had no wish to do more research after typing in rookie receivers from past years and seeing all of them have 100+ yard games. I'll compile a list for you of first round receivers over the last five years or so that have had 100+ yard games as a rookie.

I worded it wrong because I meant to say he had the most 200 yard games, he also had the most back to back 100 yard games. So as you can see, I jumbled my stats a bit. Sorry._________________2015 - In Zimmer We Trust.
"If it rains, we're not going in. ...If there's lightning, we're going in. If it's hailing, put your helmets on." - Mike Zimmer

Back on topic, I can't express enough how happy I am that Matt has played at the level he is in his first season. Best pick possible!_________________
"the more I like you, the more I want to smash your face into the ground." -- Jared Allen

Even at 308 pounds, you're lean for an NFL left tackle. Have you been able to keep your weight up?

Kalil: "Yeah, it's gone down a little bit, but that's almost expected. I always lose a little weight during the season. It's been 100 times easier than in college because you eat breakfast in the morning, then go to practice and to class from 12 to 5 p.m., so I'd skip two whole meals and then eat dinner. It's hard to maintain weight on that schedule.

Now we get fed at the facility, and it's a lot easier to keep a schedule. Plus, now I can afford food."

Kalil, the fourth overall draft pick, joined Hall of Famer Gary Zimmerman and Todd Steussie as the only tackles to start all 16 games as a rookie. In doing so, Kalil was there every step of the way as running back Adrian Peterson ran for 2,097 yards, the second-highest rushing total in NFL history.

The Vikings were hoping they were getting a ten-year starter at left tackle when they drafted Matt Kalil with the fourth overall pick in last yearís draft. Based on his performance as a rookie, Kalil has met and exceeded all expectations. Kalil was billed as the only surefire premium pass protector in last yearís draft, and he did not disappoint. He displayed his unique blend of size, length and foot quickness from the start to be a highly proficient blind-side pass blocker from the very beginning, and rarely got any help in the protection schemes.

A starter from Day One, Kalil did not miss even a single snap all season, participating in 1097-of-1097 offensive snaps in all 16 regular season games plus the teamís playoff loss at Green Bay. Linemen donít get much statistical glory, so other than a blocked kick early in the season, he doesnít stand out in a boxscore.

While outstanding, he wasnít perfect. Depending how you grade things, Kalil may have allowed as many as six sacks on the season. However, at least four of those sacks were more the fault of the quarterback, in situations where he had his man blocked or ridden wide from the pocket, only to have the quarterback (Christian Ponder or Joe Webb) essentially break the pocket and run into a sack. Another involved a stunt miscommunication with left guard Charlie Johnson. The only truly clean sack he allowed all season might have been by Julius Peppers against the Bears in Week 11.

That said, like any left tackle, he faced plenty of top-end pass rushers this season and kept many of them quiet week in and week out.